Two killed, 42 hurt in earthquakes near Taiwan

At least two people were killed and 42 others injured in twin earthquakes that jolted the coastal water near Pingtung county in southern Taiwan.

The Pingtung county was worst hit by the quakes, followed by Kaohsiung county, the state media reported on Wednesday.

According to the local meteorological bureau, seven earthquakes occurred consecutively from late last night to early today in the sea areas near Taiwan.

The strongest quake measured 6.7 on the richter scale, the biggest to hit the sea areas in the southwest of Taiwan in the last 100 years.

Strong quakes were also felt in Fuzhou, Xiamen, Zhangzhou Quanzhou, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Shantou cities in Guangdong and Fujian provinces as well as Hong Kong and Macao, but no damage or casualty reports are available, Xinhua news agency reported.